Steve's Recipe Pick: Pecan Crusted Chicken Tenders

A weekly request around the apartment, this recipe was adapted from an Everyday Paleo recipe that went over extremely well a few months ago. An avid Chik-Fil-A fan, Steve did miss one of his all time favor comfort foods until these bad boys came out of the oven. The crunch of the pecans and almond meal coupled with the honey mustard flavor make these tenders irresistable (and paleo)!

Ingredients
- about 1.5 lbs organic, boneless, skinless chicken tenders
- 1 cup pecans
- .5 cup organic mustard
- 2 tbs honey
- olive oil
- .5 cup almond meal (optional)



Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees, lightly grease your dish with olive oil (we use a spray thing)
2. Crush your pecans into tiny pieces (you can use a food processor or a good old kitchen hammer, depending on how chunky you prefer them) and spread them out on a large plate or preferably, a pie dish of some sort. Here is where you can add the almond meal if you want your tenders a little more covered and crunchy.
3. Whisk mustard and honey together in a sizable bowl. You will end up with an assembly line that resembles this:
4. Drop the tenders in the mustard (give 'em a little rub) then place them on the pecan pieces. Flip the tenders so both sides are covered in nutty goodness and then place them in your dish. Continue to do so until your naked tender count is 0.
5. Put those suckers in the oven for about 30 minutes (or until the juices run clear) then let them cool in the pan or on a separate plate. Then enjoy!


Get cookin' y'all!

Ground Yourself

On life's journey faith is nourishment, virtuous deeds are a shelter, wisdom is the light by day and right mindfulness is the protection by night. If a man lives a pure life, nothing can destroy him.
Buddha



Sometimes it takes something as simple as yoga to humble you. Today, my instructor told me "Ground yourself." Those two little words not only brought intention to my practice, but truly got me thinking about my world outside of the little, heated studio. These past few days I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off. From getting in as many fitness classes as possible to working a floor shift at lululemon to shadowing a CrossFit class to training for Fight Gone Bad, 90% of the time I'm actually home is spent dragging my limp course to bed, the rest is prepping for the next day. Trust me, every moment has been a blessing and I am so much happier now that I was just 2 months ago, but it's a little overwhelming when you compare it to my "normal" 9-5 life I lived comfortably in until the end of July.

I've let my life pull me in crazy directions so much so that I've started loosening my grip on the things that keep me grounded - spending time with Steve and my friends, eating at normal times, my family and my ME time. This next week I will ground myself, but not give up the things I love. I will balance my work with my fun, stretches with my workout, eating with sleeping. It won't be easy, but I know that if I end up somewhere in the middle, it will be a successful week. Namaste

Why Paleo: In Less Than 6 Minutes

Courtesy of paynowlivelater

Level One Certification: Check!

In case the title didn't give it away, I am now officially certified as a Level 1 CrossFit Coach! After an intense yet amazing 2-day course in San Antonio, I am ready to start spreading the CrossFit love to everyone. I am very excited to take on classes at CrossFit Round Rock this fall (after much shadowing from the amazing coaches already teaching of course) and start my own bootcamp! I've already done a little shadowing which has truly helped my coaching development, but there is nothing like being thrown in head first to see if I swim - an opportunity that is right around the corner.

The other thing I really got more information about at my certification was nutrition. Some I already knew (refined carbs bad, protein-good) but the why's behind it were really eye opening.



I had some idea of the reasons why obesity and cardiovascular disease are continuing to plague Americans and have reached an epidemic status but some insight from Robb Wolf and the CrossFit Journal go into depth explaining Hyperinsulinism and its relationship with weight gain and every health issue from diabetes to alzheimers and even infertility. How do we avoid these diseases you ask? "Eat meat & vegetables, nuts & seeds, some fruit, little starch, and no sugar."

Big Changes

Over my 2 month absence, my life has drastically changed - and so has this blog. I am now a full time educator at lululemon athletica here in Austin and am loving every waking second of it. I've been able to focus more on my health (working out almost everyday - mixing yoga and CrossFit) and my goals. I can honestly say that 2 months ago I did have goals, but they were half hearted at best and there was no plan in action to make them a reality. Over the past month, I have finally gotten comfortable enough to sit down and evaluate what I really want out of life and how to go about getting it.



After evaluating my passions, I realize that the most important things to me are my family and friends. Next on that list, is my and their health, which leads me to this new blog direction. It is my goal to turn this outlet into a resource for paleo recipes/cooking ideas. Cooking is my therapy and food is what fuels our entire existence, so why not put my laptop where my life is and make the world a better place, one clean meal at a time!

No, I haven't been to culinary school and I certainly do not have any god-given kitchen skills (my hands are covered in scars from hot pans and pearing knives) so this is going to be a true challenge, but one that I could not be more excited about. These first few months I'll share with you my attempts at already published paleo recipes (there are blogs I have fallen in love with) and my tips and tricks for making them my own. From there, expect my original culinary creations to flow freely! Feedback is a must, so I'll be including Steve's reactions to all of my meals and snacks. As a picky, semi-paleo guy, he should be a great sounding board, but I would love some outside reports!